Judge to review Boy Scout abuse files

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PORTLAND, Ore., Aug. 15 (UPI) -- An Oregon judge says he will review internal Boy Scout files on sexual abuse cases before releasing them publicly, to protect victims' identities.

The files had been scheduled for release Aug. 21, The (Portland) Oregonian reported. Multnomah County Circuit Judge John Wittmayer said Tuesday he needs more time to go through the 20,000 pages to make sure there is nothing in them that would allow the victims of sexual abuse to be identified.

Lawyers for victims have already reviewed and redacted information from the files. They say they are opposed to any more information being removed.

"The perversion files represent a secret system, and child abuse thrives in secrecy," said Kelly Clark, who won an $18.5 million verdict in 2010, for a man who said he had been molested in the 1980s by Timur Dykes, a volunteer with the Boy Scouts in Portland. "This court has already decided that the secret system is over."

Wittmayer ordered the release of the files after the trial, saying they had been seen by jurors and others involved in the case. The Oregon Supreme Court upheld the decision in June, but said the names of both victims and people who reported suspected abuse should be redacted.